How to help your employees manage retirement

Apr 18, 2016

Usually, when you’re caught up in the daily grind, the last thing you’re thinking about is your future. Employers and employees alike are just worried about their day-to-day, why worry about 50 years down the road? But any human resources professional will tell you that that’s a bad idea. The time to start thinking about your future is now. It might seem like a tease to daydream about unlimited time to do whatever your heart desires – but that daydream won’t become a reality unless you start planning your retirement early in your career.

“Why worry about 50 years down the road?”

Right now, Inc. magazine reported that only 31 percent of small businesses of 100 employees or less supply their employees with retirement plans. But it’s also important to note that for those businesses that do provide a retirement plan like a 401(k), only about 33 percent of employees actually take advantage of it, said CNBC News. As an employer, you’ll look extremely attractive to prospective employees if you help your company actively plan for a steady and comfortable future.

This means employers need to be proactive not only about designing a plan for their employees, but educating them on it as well. Here’s what you can do to get started:

Years from now you’ll be happy you figured out a 401(k) plan today.

Offer personalized advice.
According to financial investment advisor company Betterment, you should be offering your employees personalized advice with their 401(k) plans. This is especially true for young employees who may not have ever seen a 401(k) plan – or even know what one is for that matter. In fact, about 60 percent of people with these plans are improperly educated and end up missing investment growth opportunities, said the source. Having someone on your team who can consult employees about these chances or the plan in general will provide your employees invaluable insight into a steady financial future.

Consider an employer-match plan.
One very attractive plan is to have your company match some bit of your employee’s contribution to their accounts, said Practical Money Skills. The percentage you match depends on your company, but it’s an option that looks great to prospective employees. It shows that your business really cares about the well-being of its employees even after they leave the office for retirement.

Reconsider the eligibility waiting-period.
In order to be approved for the employer-match plan however, many companies make employees go through a waiting-period. Making sure your employees are on board for the long hall might not be the answer to attracting top talent however. Time Money explained that prospective employees believe this action is relatively demeaning - they see this as a punishment for changing jobs in the first place. The source explained that the average worker spends less than five years at each job, so if every job required them to wait to get in on the 401(k) plan, they’d miss out on some serious retirement savings.

Ask for help yourself.
At the end of the day, you run a small company so creating these plans can certainly seem like an overwhelming undertaking, especially if you’ve never had to evaluate things like 401(k)s before. But they’re crucial to attracting top talent. Therefore, consider turning to HR outsourcing companies as a resource to help you pick a program that best fits your company and your benefits administration program. These types of companies are filled with professionals who are trained to aid you and your employees with the best 401(k) plan.